An electronic invitation to Artista Records' pre-Grammy party counts down the hours until the fun begins

LOS ANGELES (CNN) -- Five thousand people will be squeezing into the Shrine Auditorium Wednesday night as the countdown to the 41st Annual Grammy Awards reaches an end.

The Grammy Awards will be telecast February 24 from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on CBS at 8 p.m. EST, with Rosie O'Donnell as host. The event will also be Webcast live on the official 1999 Grammys Web site.

How did Hollywood prepare for the biggest music party of the year? With a party, of course. There is no more exclusive invitation than the one to Arista Records President Clive Davis' pre-Grammy party, held Tuesday night.

His electronic invitation, which featured a digital countdown to the party, caused quite a stir around the country.

Davis' party is a tradition. Always held the night before the Grammy Awards, Davis says "It is the night all the artists all over the country come together. They feel at home at our Arista party."

Among the guests each year are musicians, record company presidents, movie industry leaders and actors.

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Aretha Franklin rehearses "I'll Be Seeing You" [150k MPEG-3] or [205k WAV]

Lilith Fair founder Sarah McLachlan performed at Davis' pre-Grammy party Tuesday night along with Deborah Cox, Naughty By Nature, Faith Evans, Carlos Santana, and Whitney Houston.

Two-time Grammy winner McLachlan says she's "not really" nervous about her nomination in the Best Female Pop Vocal Performance category. "I'm a little excited, but it is very, very, very tough competition," says McLachlan.

Asked how it would feel to win the Grammy, McLachlan says, "It would be nice. I would be really, really flattered. I would be amazed, actually, quite honestly, because the competition is too huge. So, you know, it is just nice to get nominated."

The big picture Think for yourself! Will you be there? Look around Listen to the music

As the crowd fills Shrine Auditorium on Wednesday, millions more onlookers will be elbowing their way into cyberspace to reserve their virtual seat online. The premiere Web site for the big show is www.grammy.com.

The site has been hosting daily live interviews with artists during rehearsals. Still photos from inside the auditorium can be viewed, along with the transcripts of interviews with groups like Aerosmith and the Barenaked Ladies.

Web surfers can study every nominee in all 95 award categories, while the days of Grammy's past can be relived through video flashbacks. Lacking from the site are audio clips of nominees.